


dancing queen

by xahnadu



Category: Mass Effect
Genre: Canon Compliant, F/M, Fluff, Friendly banter, Pre-Relationship, Small Drabble, aka the headcanon no one asked for, cursing, dont ask me when, in which shepard listens to 70's music, takes place somewhere in mass effect 2
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-18
Updated: 2017-02-18
Packaged: 2018-09-25 06:33:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 972
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9807404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xahnadu/pseuds/xahnadu
Summary: He didn’t recognize any of the song names. They were all obscure to Garrus; he didn’t listen to music too often, much less human music. He shrugged as a digit hovered over the play button on the screen. What lied in wait for him? Garrus pressed the glowing button and was left in silence for a moment as the song loaded. He felt an odd kind of anticipation rise in his chest.





	

**Author's Note:**

> the product of a 2am conversation and my shameful playlist of 70's music. also Baby's First Writing and it's not very long

The captain’s cabin was certainly… outfitted, Garrus supposed. Neat and tidy, decked out with Shepard’s own personal terminal, armor station, and other amenities. Another crewmember aboard the Normandy would most likely be secretly jealous of Shepard’s own private space. They didn’t exactly enjoy sleeping on twin-sized bunk beds, after all.

However, if anyone deserved accommodations like these, it was Shepard. To put it simply, she led a very _demanding_ lifestyle. 

The Commander had to rush down to the crew’s deck, cutting their conversation short— apparently there had been some kind of… confrontation between Jack and Miranda. It had been announced by Joker, who even had the decency to ask for pictures. Even as Shepard made a sound of distaste, Garrus couldn’t help but let a chuckle escape his jaws. Ah.

He watched as Shepard exited the cabin, his eyes lingering on the entrance before moving to the fish tank. She had invited him to her cabin to have a friendly conversation in private, since standing around in the main battery was far too uncomfortable, what with there being a lack of seating and the algorithms still running through Garrus’ mind as they spoke. They had been in the middle of friendly banter when she had been spirited away to the lower deck. 

He had very vague opinions about both Miranda and Jack. All he knew was that he didn’t trust them. A top Cerberus agent and a biotic killing machine? How the hell was he supposed to put his complete faith in them? He respected Shepard’s decisions, but damn, one of these days it was going to come back and bite her in the ass. Fate had cruel plans for them, after all. It always found new ways to twist their plans into frightening iterations of what they had once been. Take a look at what the problem with Saren had turned into. Shit was ridiculous. 

Garrus reclined in the chair, glancing from the empty fish tank to the desk adorned with Shepard’s personal terminal. He found himself wondering about the Commander’s hobbies. Did she do anything in her free time when she wasn’t focused on saving the galaxy? He supposed none of them did, really. Their work kept them busy, what with little time between missions.

The music player next to him then caught his attention. Huh. Now that he thought about it, he had no idea what kind of music Shepard listened to. Garrus supposed that he never really thought of Shepard as the type to listen to music. It hadn’t really occurred to him that she may enjoy a particular kind of music. 

His interest piqued, the turian rose from the white recliner and approached the glowing device and reached out with a hand to activate it. He didn’t recognize any of the song names. They were all obscure to Garrus; he didn’t listen to music too often, much less human music. He shrugged as a digit hovered over the play button on the screen. What lied in wait for him? Garrus pressed the glowing button and was left in silence for a moment as the song loaded. He felt an odd kind of anticipation rise in his chest—

He nearly jumped, startled by the sudden onslaught of piano and guitar that assaulted the silence that fled the room. Garrus stood there, frozen as a stared down at the device. 

_“Waterloo, promise to love you forever more; Waterloo, couldn't escape if I wanted to; Waterloo, knowing my fate is to be with you!”_

Waterloo. The name didn’t ring a bell, but it did mention something about Napoleon— wasn’t that some human historical figure? Just how old was this song? He clicked the next button on the music device.

This song sounded a bit more obnoxious than the last, women in the background singing with piano accompanying them. About thirty seconds in, the woman started singing. Oh, stars above.

 _“...see that girl, watch that scene, dig in the dancing queen!”_ Is this what Shepard actually listened to? His mandibles flared out in a grin, crossing his arms and setting his weight on one leg. It was hard to imagine the savior of the galaxy listening to something as obnoxious as these songs. Garrus flipped through the songs, amusement shifting the plates on his face.

Garrus was in limbo between amusement and disgust with the woman’s taste in music. He almost forgot that Shepard was out dealing with the scuffle until he heard a strained cough behind him. The turian looked over his shoulder to find a very red-faced Commander with a look of distress on her face. Where there should be silence were the lyrics to I Will Survive. An ironic addition to her playlist, Garrus thought to himself.

 _“So,”_ Garrus began, pausing only to turn down the music a bit, “you listen to music?” He tried to keep the amusement out of his dual-toned voice.

There was a tense pause. He could see that Shepard was searching for words.

“Yes.”

“It’s absolute shit.”

“Don’t you _dare_ tell anyone.”

Garrus’ mandibles twitched into a grin. “Not even Joker?”

“Especially not Joker, you jackass.”

There were a few more choice words thrown about in the air before they sat down again, grins adorning both of their faces as Garrus made more comments on the enigma that is human music.

 

Not even two days later, running his usual algorithms and making adjustments, Garrus found himself muttering lyrics under his breath. “See that girl, watch that scene—” 

He caught himself, immediately stopped what he was doing, and left the main battery. Garrus rode the elevator up and found Shepard on the second deck, reading a new message on her terminal.

The turian angrily stomped up to the woman. “I fucking hate you.”

Shepard smiled, her grin smug, and turned back to the screen.


End file.
